Monday, April 11, 2011

Reptiles, Musical Satire, and Word of Mouth

Okay, not real reptiles.

I was referring to The Austin Lounge Lizards, one of my favorite bands. They played the Barns (TG's theater) on Saturday, and since TG knows how much I like them, he wangled me a good seat.

Yup, that's just one of the perks of being married to a guy who regularly works sixteen-hour days seeing that the show always goes on. All that showbiz glamor comes with a lot of sweat.

Since I like The Austin Lounge Lizards, you can safely bet they are:

(A) Musically talented.

(B) Funny.

(C) More than a little irreverent.

They are true masters of satire, taking aim at society, religion, and the government. Oh, and Texas. Yet they somehow manage not to come across as mean spirited.

Sometimes you just have to poke fun at big, serious stuff people like to fight about. Laughter is an excellent buffer.  

Here's a music video of one of my favorites, called "Too Big to Fail," skewering our country's current economic woes:



No, they don't dress in barrels when they perform the song live, alas. But they all wear Hawaiian shirts, which is almost as cool.

Speaking of cool, when I took my seat in the audience, next to the wife of one of the band members, she said, "You must be Linda. I can't wait to read your book!"

Whoa! I about fell out of my chair. 

TG has apparently been talking me up to all the artists who play the Barns, ever since Agent Extraordinaire, Michelle Wolfson, sold my books. The band member's wife recognized me by the pink in my hair. I got the same reaction from one of the band members I ran into during intermission.

It hit home, again, that OTHER PEOPLE, most of them total strangers, are going to be reading my books. As my agency sistah, Tawna Fenske, talks about here, this can be frightening to contemplate.

It's not that you don't know it all along. In theory. As an interesting concept. But every now and then it sinks into your gut...and squeezes tight.

It was weird because I'm always a teensy bit star-stuck to meet the performers (not being musically talented in the least myself, I am in awe of those who are), and here they seemed impressed with me. An extremely odd sensation, let me tell you. Of course, I almost had a panic attack, right there in the middle of all those Austin Lounge Lizard fans handled it with my usual aplomb.

Once I gathered my wits, I decided it was pretty neat. Musicians read! (Something else I also knew in concept. I'd just never talked books with any of them before.) All kinds of people READ! I find this heartening. People reading represents a certain amount of job security (duh) for writers everywhere, which is not a bad thing.

So now TG has big marketing plans for In A Fix. He's going to send copies of it (once there are copies of it) on tour with some of the bands that play the Barns, with instructions to read it (if they want) and pass it along to their fans in other cities. So, at the very least, I know my book will get a tour, whether I get to travel with it or not.

Hmm. Word of mouth, set to music. I like it. :)

17 comments:

Teri Anne Stanley said...

Whaaaa! People know who you are? Like REAL people, not just us virtual stalkers!?!

Huh. That's awesome.

On another note, I gotta wonder...do the Austin Lounge Lizards wear the same thing under their barrels and those nutty Scots wear under their kilts?

Kerry Schafer said...

Hey, what an awesome marketing plan! And just wait until people everywhere know who you are - you'll have to wear dark glasses and, um, dye your hair orange or something. : ) Seriously - that is totally cool though. I, myself, can't wait to read your book.

Summer Frey said...

That's a great marketing plan!! You should get those Scottish guys to work something out for all the women trying to peek under their kilts--bam, your book! :)

Steph Schmidt said...

TG is a genius. How exciting to think not only will the real book formn someday exist but it'll go on tour too!

And thank you for posting that video. This Monday is kicking my butt and it's not even 8am.

abby mumford said...

now THAT'S a book tour. how about i go along with it and be its chaperon. i'd make a really good roadie.

congrats on being recognized! there's a lot more where that came from.

Linda G. said...

Teri -- Only the ones TG has annoyed with the story. ;) And I can't say for sure what they wear under those barrels. TG wouldn't let me ask. Said something about it being unprofessional. Sheesh. Can't a girl express a healthy curiosity?

Kerry -- LOL! Dark glasses and orange hair? I'll keep that in mind. ;)

Summer -- The Flying Karamozov Brothers? Good idea! Maybe I can get them to juggle my book!

Steph -- TG will be happy to hear that. :) And sorry Monday is beating you up. Hit back harder!

Abby -- It was only because TG told my pink hair story. And, yeah, you should totally go on tour with my book. You don't mind hauling heavy instruments and washing sweaty band clothes, do you?

Kimberly Sabatini said...

Yeah, I get that same panic attack from time to time LOL! I know it's going to be amazing. I'm a fan!!!!

Candyland said...

I've never seen a stage production. I bet it's pretty cool, though working 16 hour days...yikes.

Jennifer Shirk said...

WOW! How cool is that?

(But I personally can't wait for your book to come out either):-)

Michele Shaw said...

That's it. You're famous, Linda! Woo-hoo! What a great marketing plan, too! Enjoy it, no panicking. You'll be a big success:)

Susan Flett Swiderski said...

Oh, my, this could be the start of something BIG! (Better get used to it!) Awesome. Awesome that someone recognized you, and even more awesome that your hubby is so supportive of your work.

Linda G. said...

Kimmie -- Thanks! Can't wait to read yours, too. :)

Candyland -- Well, it's not 16 hours everyday, thank goodness. Only in the crunch times.

Jennifer -- Thanks! :)

Michelle -- LOL! Far from it. They only knew me because TG blabbed about my pink hair stripe before I got there. ;)

Susan -- Ha! Doubt that seriously, but it was kind of fun...in a belly-clenching way. ;) And, yeah, TG has always been really supportive of my writing. He's a good guy. :)

Trisha Leigh said...

That's got to be a pretty amazing feeling, and I'm sure they're just a little star struck around YOU as well, you pink haired wild lady. I can't wait to read your book either. I'm thinking of holding it as I walk around town going, do you know Linda Grimes? Seriously, you don't? I don't know how that's possible, she wrote this book. Look. LOOK.

I won't scare them. Okay fine, I'll try not to scare them.

Dianne K. Salerni said...

Awesome! Loved that video! How DO you get too big to fail?!? What a shame that they don't really perform wearing barrels.

And yes, having your book out there is the scariest thing ever! Start practicing now how to handle comments of all sorts with aplomb and charm:

"I know your book was based on real events, but I didn't like what happened." (Smile)

"I thought there might be vampires or zombies in it, but there wasn't." (Smile)

"If I liked historical fiction I would have liked your book, but I don't, so I didn't." (smile)

And in spite of all that nonsense, someone will tell you how much they loved your book, and it will all be worthwhile.

Enjoy the journey!!!

Unknown said...

And I can't wait to read your book too!!!
You're gonna have to save some ARCs for us, virtual stalkers, and not give them all away to flesh-and-bones people! :P

Maery Rose said...

As someone with book dreams, I can imagine how exciting it must be as those sorts of things happen and things start to become more "real". I loved the music video. You're right, humor helps. I like it better than the angry barbs.

Jennifer Shirk said...

Hey, I just wanted to add from my blog post today that for the record, my grandmom really wanted me to be named Linda and not Jennifer. Funny, huh? :)